Process of treating comminuted lignocellulose.



G. H. TOMLINSON.

PROCESS OF TREATING GOMMINUTED LIGNO GELLULOSE.

APPLICATION FILED BIA R. 10,191 1.

Patented July 16, 1912.

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'GEORGE H. TOMLINSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO STANDARD ALCOHOL COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

PROCESS OF TREATING COMMINUTED LIGNOCELLULOSE.

To all whom it may concern:

SON, a subject of the King of England, residing at .Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Processes of Treating Connninuted Lignocellulose, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to processes of treating comminuted ligno cellulose, and has for its object to provide a new and improved process of this description. I

Referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein there is shown one form of apparatus for carrying out this process,.Figure 1 is a side elevation showing a particular apparatus for carrying out the process; Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken-on line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a view showing a modified construction,

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several figures.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a method of properly acidulat-ing comminuted ligno cellulose, such for example as sawdust, for the purpose of utilizing it in producing fermentable sugar, as set out, for example, in United States Letters Patent 1909, to jEwen and Tomlinson.

When it is desired to mix a amount of acid such as sulfuric acid with a large amount of sawdust, it has been found exceedingly diflicult to secure a proper mixture andso to spread the acid as to bring some of it in contact with each particle of sawdust. If it is attempted to mix a small amount of acid with a large amount of sawdust in the ordinary digester in which-the sawdust is treated, the mixture is liable not to be uniform, some portions of'the sawdust receiving an excessive amount of acid while other portions of the sawdust receive very little or none. By means of the present process a small amount of acid may be so thoroughly mixed with a large amount of sawdust as to secure a substantially uniform mixture.

In carrying out the process the sawdust is provided in a moist condition and is then brought into contact with a hydrolyzing gas, usually an acidulating gas or vapor in sucha way that this acidulating gas or vapor comes Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 10, 1911.

No. 938,308, granted October 26,

Patented July 16, 1912.

Serial No. 613,502.

. in contact with the various. particles of saw- Be it known that I. Geonon H. To)rLIX-- dustin a substantially uniform manner. If, for example, this acidulating gas is sulfuric anhydrid (S0 it unites with the water in the sawdust forming sulfuric acid (H thus producing a uniform acidulation.

Any suitable apparatus may be used for carrying out the process. As herein shown there is provided an apparatus for spreadmg the sawdust into thin sheets or streams, and then bringing the acidulating gas or vapor into contact with the-sawdust when thus spread out.

Referring now to the drawings, there is illustrated an absorbing chamber 1, which may be made of any suitable material such as brick, and which is provided with an acid-proof lining. Located within this chamher are a series of superposed, spaced, spreading. devices 2, 2, conical in form, and apertured attheir bases, as indicated at 6,

leaving supporting legs 5 adapted to engage proper supports 4 carried. by the chamber walls. Beneath each spreading device 2, and likewise carried by the support 4, is a hopper 3, having an open bottom 7 which hopper serves to collect the material fallingthrough the apertures 6 and to deliver it at the apex of the spreading device 2 next below. The sawdust or other material flowing from the lowermost hopper is carried by a conveyer 16 to any desired point. There is preferably provided between the lowermost hopper 3 and the conveyer a wheel 17 provided with pockets into which the material is received from the hopper, and from which it is discharged into the conveyer as the wheel is revolved in any desired manner, as by means of the motor 18. All surfaces within the chamber are of course 'of acid-resisting material.

Located above the absorbing chamber 1 is a hopper or other suitable receptacle 8, into which the comminuted ligno cellulose is' placed so that it can be conveniently fed into the absorbing chamber. Some means is provided for securing a substantially uniform feed. This may be done by providing at the bottom of the hopper a rotating wheel 9 having a series ofpockets into which the sawdust drops from the hopper and is then carried around to the opening 10 of'tlie absorbing chamber where it is dropped into such chamber. This wheel may be run in any desired manner, as by means of a motor 11. This motor, as shown,-is a variable speed motor so that the feed of thesawdust can be regulated as desired by increasing or de creasing the speed oft-he wheel 9. Any other suitgz-ble means for varying the feed may be The receptacle 8 may be-provided with an opening 12, through which a poker may be inserted to keep the sawdust moving in 10 ghe' event the hopper becomes obstructed y it. p

The acidulating gas or vapormay be introduced into the absorbing chamber near the bottom, as by means of pipe 13, and

after passing through the chamber may pass out at the top thereof through the pipes 14.

cans are provided for regulating or varying the amount of acidulating gas or vapor passed into the absorbing chamber. This may be done by means of a valve 15. When the construction herein shown is used there are preferably provided one or more doors 19 at the bottom of the absorbing chamber, so that access to the conveyer and associated -2 5 parts may be had.

Instead of using sulfuric anhydrid, sulfuric acid-itself may be sprayed into the absorbing chamber, as shown in Fig. 4. In this construction air or steam is passed through the pipe 20. Sulfuric acid is fed into this pipe in any desired manner, as by means ofv an ejector, and the material is formed into a spray by the nozzle 21 and passes through the absorbing chamber so 5 as'to be brought into contact with the comminuted ligno cellulose. It is of course evident that any other proper acidulating medium may be used. It is also evident that the acidulating gas may be introducedinto 40 the absorbing chamber at any point, and

that any other suitable means than that herein shown may be used to secure the attenuated condition of cellulose.

The words hydrolyzing gas have been used in the, specification and claims, and this term is intended to include gas, vapor, spray or the like.

The use and operation of the invention are as follows: In using paratus shown, to carry out the process, the sawdust or other comminuted cellulose is placed in the receptacle 8 and the material fed therefrom through the opening 10 into the absorbing chamber 1. This material .then engages the top spreading de-' vice 2 and is spread out into a thin sheet. 'It then passes through the spaces 6 into the hopper 3, the material passing from one spreading device to the other successively as it traverses the'absorbing chamber. It will thus be seen that this material is spread out throughout its travel into thin sheets or streams. The acidulating gas or the comminuted ligno the particular ap vapor is passed intothe absorbing chamber through the pipe 13. It then passes up through the chamber as the comminuted cellulose is passing'down. This acidulating gas or vapor passes through the comminuted material as it drops from one spreading device to the next and also passes along the surface of the comminuted 'material while it is on the spreading device. It will thus be seen that this acidulating gas or vapor comes into contact with all the particles of the comminuted material, and that a substantially uniform acidulation is secured. The sawdust or other comminuted ligndc'ellulose ordinarily used contains from thirty per cent. to fifty per cent. of Water and when sulfuric anhydrid (S0 is used, it will combine directly with some of this water to form sulfuric acid. If desired, the interior of the absorbing chamber or the spreading device may be heated so as to prevent condensation of the sulfuric acid. This may be accomplished in any desired manner. By means of this process a sufficiently uniform mixture may be secured when the proportion of the acid to the comminuted cellulose is very small, such, for example, as cent. of acid to one hundred per cent. of comminuted material, and when sawdust is used this uniform acidulation may be secured without increasing the percentage of moisture over that found in the sawdust. By regulating the quantity of comminuted material and the quantity of gas or vapor entering the absorbing chamber, it will be seen that a proper relative flow of the two elements may be easily secured for the purpose of obtaining the result desired.

When the acidulated comminuted cellulose is used to produce fermentable sugar and alcohol, it is found that with the comparatively uniform mixture secured by this process there is better fermentation and the amount of fermentable sugar or alcohol secured from any given amount of comininuted cellulose may be materially higher than can be obtained y methods of mixing the comminuted material and acid as here 'tofore practised.

I claim 1. The process of treating comminuted lign o cellulose, which consists in setting the comminuted ligno cellulose inmotion and then spreading it into aicomparatively thin stream, and then bringing a hydrolyzing gas into contact therewith so as to produce a substantially uniform impregnation of the ligno cellulose.

2. The process of treating comminuted ligno cellulose, which consists in setting the ligno cellulose in motion and spreading it into acomparatively thinstream, and then bringing a hydrolyzing gas into contact with V said stream while in motion. p

3. The process of treating comminuted 7 ligno cellulose,which consists moving the comminuted lignocellulose in one direction and a hydrolyzing .gas. in another direction -ligno cellulose, which consists in moving the comminuted ligno cellulose in one direction and a hydrolyzing 1 gas in another direction so as to bring it into intimate contact with the moving lignocellulose and controlling therelative amounts of the lig'no cellulose and the hydrolyzing gas. I

5. The process of securing asubstantially uniform mixture of a large amount of comminuted ligno cellulose and a comparatively small amount of sulfuric acid which consists in moving moist comminuted ligno cel lulose While in an attenuated condition, so

that while in motion it comes into contact 2 with sulfuric anhydrid gas also in motion.

6. The process of treating comminuted ligno-cellulose, which consists in repeat-- edly spreading the same into a comparatively thin stream or layer, in an atmos- 25 here ofh drolyzin gas. Y p EirEORGl H. TOMLINSON.

Wit'nesses g 1 v FRANoIs W. PARKER, Jr., SOPHIE B. WERNER. 

